THE MACHPELAH CAVE: ISRAEL SHOULD INCORPORATE A SECOND INITIATION SERVICE FOR IT'S SOLDIERS ...

... TO ADD A DOWN TO EARTH COMPONENT TO THE ALIYAH OF THE VOWS TAKEN AT MASADA, AND THIS SECOND SERVICE SHOULD BE IN THE MACHPELAH CAVE.

As a nation, Israel today can be understood as a tumultuous sea of secular tides riding forcefully over strong undercurrents of orthodoxy. In the context of the larger world Israel's "sea" is a subset of the larger "oceans". Israel is unique, and yet Israel's worldly intercourse is historical and undeniable. Therefore the distinct conflicts of Jewish orthodoxy versus Jewish secularism do not occur in a unique "fishbowl" and are part and parcel of the various secularisms and orthodoxies of the larger world, including those orthodoxies and secularisms that would destroy and bury Israel altogether.

World commerce tends to be a secular phenomenon far more than a religious one, except perhaps that even in the world of business there are cultures of "orthodox" or "conservative" in contradistinction to "liberal" or "idolatrous" or even "criminal" business cultures. [Even the world of "criminal" business practices can be broken down into it's camps of "honor among thieves", etc.].

Human material needs often appear to precede genuine religious or spiritual needs, even though one must wonder, "What is the point of material success in the absence of a spiritual life?" And the inverse of this is of course, "What is the point of a spiritual life without a material life?" All societies struggle in this way and the story of Israel is a world captivating story precisely because the survival of Israel is all about this struggle between the Sacred and the Profane, the Holy versus the Idolatrous, the Spiritual against the bas relief of the Material.

No better example of this conflict in Israel itself is the recent set of incidences in Hebron at the Machpelah Cave (Cave of the Patriarchs) and including the forced evacuation of a home of Jewish Pioneers (Beit HaShalom). These events are preceded by the events of the forced Gaza evacuation and the Pogrom at Amona. But they are of the same ilk, a waging of internecine warfare between Jew and Jew, one driven by the motivations of Faith, History, and Creed, whereas the other is motivated by the so-called Pragmatisms of modern political realities. One regards Faith as the Raison d'Etre (Reason for Being); the other regards Faith as questionable and expendable sentimentalism.

Soldiers of the IDF take their vows of service to defend Israel at a ceremony atop Masada. It is a quasi-religious service in that it calls upon the selflessness of each and every Israeli to serve his country, even at the cost of his or her own life, and against the backdrop of the "no surrender" suicide pact of the Jewish Martyrs, who took on Ancient Rome and perished at Masada. In the desert high on a mountain top cut off from the world in a place where Heaven is perceived but beyond actual grasp, the Israeli soldier has achieved an "aliyah" for a time above his people.

It would do well for Israel to incorporate an additional initiation service of vows for it's soldiers of a more religious nature in the Machpelah Cave. For Israel exists not to be above the World; Israel exists to follow the model of it's Patriarchs. Their bones lie in the Machpelah Cave, which is the heritage and inheritance of Israel since Abraham purchased the Cave from Ephron the HIttite in biblical times.

Perhaps as well in such a context the sacred and the profane of Israel can be elevated for God and for Good rather for the Corrupt and the Insidious. Gilad Shalit is in a cave of his own at this very moment and is far closer to the bones of the Patriarchs than the indifferent of Israel.